I have tried this battery in the Gaucho and it all seems to work fine, however I don't think that it's going to last long enough powering it. For example one of the places I will be taking my son is a huge forest area with some great muddy paths and tracks where you can walk for miles.

I don't want to get the Gaucho into the car, go all the way over there and the battery dies after 20 minutes...

I wanted to fit another 12v Car battery similar to the one that came fitted when I got it, but many many people on these forums say that this is a huge no no and that it's super dangerous and only an SLA battery should be used:

The thing is though, pretty much every single Gaucho I've seen on eBay etc ALL have been converted to a car battery. I even bought some new wheels for the Gaucho from a great shop in Ireland and I asked the guy there what he thought and he said he's fitted many customer's cars with 12v car batteries for years with no problems.

I'm now re-considering buying a car battery, a decent make, brand new, properly secured, and I'm wondering what exactly to look out for when buying one in terms of brand, type, amp hours etc. It's all a little confusing to me.

Most of the threads I've seen stating not to do this are from 2006-ish and I'm wondering if battery technology has moved on a bit since then, or may be a little safer?

Obviously I don't want to put my son in any danger, but I don't want to go over the top wrapping him in cotton wool either.

Does anyone here have any advice or suggestions? Am I crazt to consider the Car battery?

Any help would be great guys, my son's birthday is in 1 weeks time and he doesn't know he's getting the car yet

I have 2x 10ah batteries in my sons mustang and it has run for over 3 hours without running out of power. I know it wasn't constant use but it was pretty darn close I would say 2 out of the 3 hours it was running. They have higher amp hour SLA batteries that I'm sure would fit in the spot of that car battery and provide adequate run time without compromising safety. Car batteries are not really made to deep cycle on an electric vehicle anyways and the charging cycles would be greatly reduced the deeper the discharge on the battery. I've seen many people put car batteries in these things with no ill effects but I'd rather not make my kids the test subjects to save a few dollars on a battery.

Not sure about the brand haven't seen them here but the sellers reputation looks good so that must say something about the quality for the money. Price seems on par with other batteries I've seen that size. As long as it fits in your battery location I'd give it a go.

Make sure you put a 30amp fuse inline and get rid of those alligator clips and make a solid connection to the battery with the proper ring terminals and bolts/nuts. Wiring should be at least 12awg I prefer 10awg but 12 will do fine.

With that size battery I would get a higher amp charger around 5amp or so to charge that battery a little quicker. A stock charger or most low amp battery maintainers could take 24+ hours to charge a completely depleted battery.

User mini profile

Not sure if your situation allows it but how about taking a few spare batteries along (12-12 or 12-10) in a back pack? Remember, bigger batteries last longer but are heavier. Increased weight results in shorter ride times, especially on hilly terrain.

When we used rides for trick or treating , I brought spares along with me.

DRIVE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT!..........Out of somebody's garbage

I'm trying to get out of PWs.........That idea's not working out real well......

My time on MPW is limited these days. I'm trying to check in everyday.....please be patient when awaiting responses.